August 12, 2011

NEWS: (Mrs. Jellyfish) and I are moving to Canada in October. It wasn't an easy decision, and there's lots of work still to be done, but there you go. Hope to see some of you Irelanders before we leave.

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Writing is a way for me to remember things that are happening now so I
can look back at where I was and reflect on how my life has changed.
Last year about this time I was in Chicago for the
weekend. Today my children are traveling there so they can have their
dolls' ears pierced. Yesterday they went to the bank for the cash they'd
need. This morning they packed their dolls in their backpacks so they'd
be ready to go.

Yesterday I poured myself a bowl of cereal for breakfast. Normally I
eat a little, choke down some vitamins and leave early. I probably could
have forced myself to eat a few bites but the idea of undigested food
churning in my stomach had me dumping uneaten cereal. Every bite of food
I eat is problematic in some way. There are medical
reasons behind much of why my body does not
function normally. After modern medicine failed to address any of these
conditions I went elsewhere because I believe my health is worth it.

Formerly I thought I was making strides towards better money
management. Now I can say that I am able to navigate my paychecks more
confidently knowing that I have a plan in place. Back in November I was
promised a quarterly bonus. September will be here soon and I am finally
hearing rumors that something has been put in place to recognize the
efforts my department has made to win people back.

The other day I spoke with a woman who I think will start buying our
line of compression hose. A mindset is a curious thing in that price is
not always the reason people purchase goods and services. Quality is a
factor as well as the relationship one has with people who supply items
they need or want. My job is to find out why customers are purchasing
from people other than us and establish good relationships so they buy
more and recommend us to others.

Most of the people in my department focus on pushing products. I do not
see that as effective sales so I try to build relationships and
establish trust. Once people view you as an expert they trust your
council and after I've gathered enough information to make an
appropriate recommendation people usually buy what I have on the table. A
couple weeks ago I guy I've been in touch with called me out of the
blue. His company had been invited to a diabetes awareness event and he
was interested in the marketing materials I could supply him with.

When I told him that event would be big for him I had no idea he
would call me with a rough sketch of a $15-20K initial order. Most
companies who ask for discounts have no intention of passing along the
savings to their customers. This man said they wanted to save his
patients money which I thought was commendable. Throughout my day I work
with all types of people and practices. My theory is that you attract
people whose values mirror yours which is hopefully why I'm attracting
people whose ethics I regard highly.

Tuesday morning the president of our company called me in to his
office to discuss an email he had received from the president of a
competitor of ours. The email accused me of saying that this particular
competitor sold shoes that "were really crappy and fell apart right
away". My first thought was that this was some kind of a joke. Every
shoe company out there has its enemies, people talk trash about other
companies and products and you'd hardly expect McDonald's to promote
the flame broiled goodness of Burger King sandwiches.

I stewed about that for a while before thinking; if the president of
another company is mentioning me he must feel threatened by that rumor.
Someone could be trying to get me into trouble but I am a very small cog
in the sales force that doesn't even travel to trade shows. If I was
that president I would realize that a good competitor can be one of your
best incentives to get your act together so you are in a position to
compete with them.

The phrase 'work like you don't need the money' has always struck
me as foolish however I think I am starting to realize the value in that
statement. If I focused on the money I would have quit long ago. What I
value is the relationships I've forged and the people I meet who have
invited me into their professional lives.

Currently I am some medication that is not very good for the liver. I
am on this medication because other safer alternatives have failed to
knock out the systemic infection in my body. Most days I wake up wanting
to fall back into bed and sleep for another hundred years or so.
Exhaustion is not the same as being tired. If you feel physically unable
to walk to the bathroom, you'd rather lay in bed than get up to eat and
you want to lay down in your driveway and cry instead of going to work
you are clinically depressed, exhausted or both.

Daily I have to remind myself that others have it much worse than I
do. Sometimes I get bitter, jealous and resentful that others can eat
what they want, have money to spare and energy to get through their days
without napping or crying. Summer has been not very warm up here. I
wear winter clothes to work so my fingers don't turn blue and I wish we
could turn the air off but then others would complain.

Walking helps some so I try to stay on top
of that. Yesterday I skipped it as I hadn't eaten anything and didn't
feel up to it. My aunt took me out for supper, I had some very nice soup
and some steamed tapioca. It was lovely to have a choice on the dessert
menu for a welcome change. After our meal we walked to the health food
store where I picked up some deals on cocont oil, spinach and tuna.

People are constantly telling me they need to eat better, exercise
more, spend less, whatever it is. I used to complain about these things
and sometimes still do. Action is necessary to change patterns so you
have to find a way to start changing whatever it is you are malcontent
with. People find ways to incorporate their priorities into their lives.
Right now I could be cleaning or cooking or walking however I haven't
written anything personally meaningful in a while and wanted to get some
of these things out of my system.

Twitter, much more than Facebook or
Google+, has been my source of inspirational quotes and people. Last
Sunday I received an email from a man in Bolivia. My neighbor is
visiting Latin America in January and I like the idea that the clothes
my girls wore will be appreciated by someone I don't know thousands of
miles away from my home. I see the clutter in my life and make decisions
about past purchases, finally seeing that my children really didn't
need the things I thought they did.

When I first joined Twitter I was amazed at all the crap, however
over time I've learned how to sort out who I want to follow. I've picked
up some cool followers and lost many more. I'd like to close with a
quote I read long ago that kind of sums up my new way of thinking: Never
spend money you don't have to buy things you don't need to impress
people you don't like.